


A path of vengeance

by USSRomanoff



Series: 15/100 challenge [5]
Category: Hawkeye (Comics), Marvel (Comics), Marvel 616
Genre: A bit more summary than anything, Alternate Universe, Gen, anti hero kate, concept of something longer I'd like to do, not sure anyone would want to read it though, rape mention, what if
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-20
Updated: 2015-12-20
Packaged: 2018-05-07 22:41:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5473190
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/USSRomanoff/pseuds/USSRomanoff
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What if Kate never met the Young Avengers? What if she decided to take up vigilante work without a stronger moral code? </p>
<p>Anti-hero Kate AU</p>
            </blockquote>





	A path of vengeance

**Author's Note:**

> 34\. Shades of grey
> 
> I've considered doing a longer chaptered work focused around this concept. I'm sort of using this prompt to write a short more of a Drabble to get a feel for if this would be a story people would read.

New York was a hub of superheroes, almost no where else had as many in one city. Yet somehow, crime was still ridiculous. One would figure it to be the safest city, but it wasn't even close. It felt like a cliche, to join into the system that failed her. But it was how she was able to cope. 

There were plenty of places to hide in the shadows and watch. Kate had learned the best ways to stay out of sight until she wanted to be seen over the last five or so years. Rooftops and fire escapes were some of her best options as an archer. She could look down and usually go unnoticed. 

Kate had already enjoyed archery and after she was attacked she focused on becoming a master marksman. She learned martial arts as well so she would be able to protect herself. That's what it started as, just trying to protect herself. But when her rapist wasn't caught, she felt like she needed to do more. She was afraid and it made he angry, she shouldn't have to feel like she needed to protect herself. 

That's when she started going out at night, starting to try to stop crimes. If nothing could be done for what happened to her she could try to make sure that didn't happen to other people. She didn't have a problem with using force if she had to, she didn't stay to see if the people she shot with her arrows survived. She just moved on. As a general rule though, muggers or your everyday thieves got and arrow in their knee or shoulder, anyone sexually assaulting someone though, those she outright killed. 

Kate went on like this through the rest of high school and then into her twenties. She adopted a name for herself, every hero had one didn't they. Only heroes and cops were the ones that let her down. She came upon the name on accident. 

She had just stopped a mugger and was holding him there with her arrow fixed on him. He laughed at her, thinking the thin girl in the purple jumpsuit would be be easy to overtake. 

"What are you, some kind of Hawkeye?" He asked, twirling his knife in a way Kate was sure he thought to be threatening. 

Kate looked over him as she thought about that. Of course she knew of the Avenger that also used a bow and arrow. It was funny to her to take on the name of one of these supposed heroes that were supposed to protect people. From what she saw all they did was fight among themselves. Why not call herself that? 

"Yeah, I guess I am," Kate shrugged before she shot the guy in the knee and left. 

From then on that was the identity she went by if asked. It was probably a good idea to try not to advertise who she really was. Her family was already in the public eye enough. 

The week she turned twenty-one, she was out in Bed Stuy of all places. She was still following leads to try to find her rapist. He was still out there for all she knew. He'd never been caught for attacking her she knew that. She wasn't having a whole lot of luck but she wasn't about to pack it in. 

She sat on a rooftop in the neighborhood she'd heard he might be hanging around. Nothing out of the ordinary stood out to her and she didn't see him. It was cold, January in New York usually was. She'd brought a large thermos of coffee to drink to keep her awake and warm. 

She looked down off the side of the roof, trying to see the source of a noise she heard from below. There was a metallic twang next to her and she looked down to see an arrow through her thermos. Kate quickly reached for an arrow from her quiver as she looked for the source of the arrow. 

"It's not cool to go around using someone else's name," a voice from the shadows said. Kate looked up in surprise as the original Hawkeye stepped forward and she swallowed nervously. She'd never thought he'd cross her path, she didn't know why but she never thought it would happen. 

"To be fair, I didn't give that to myself... It just stuck around," Kate said as she shrugged. 

"To be fair you've been using my name and killing people," he replied with a deep frown. 

Kate sighed and looked at him. "It's not like they were decent people." 

"That's not for you to decide. You can't just make a snap judgement and just end another life," he said. 

Kate looked away, she wasn't going to justify herself and explain to him. He wasn't done though apparently with the lecturing. 

"How old are you anyways? Twelve? You're too young to be getting involved in anything like this," he said. 

Kate frowned, hating how condescending he sounded. "Don't pretend to know me," she said. 

"Well you're using my name so I don't see why I can't," he said. 

Kate sighed, wanting to get back to what she was doing and away from him. "Fine, I won't us your name anymore," she said. 

"That's not good enough," he said taking a step toward her. "You need to stop hurting people." 

"Why?" She asked growing angry. "People are hurt by them and nothing happens. Why shouldn't some of those people that are hurting others be taken off the streets?" 

"There's a big difference between getting people off the streets and killing them. Besides, it's not your job," he replied. 

"No... You're right. It's not my job, but no one else is doing anything," Kate said and grabbed her bag for her gear. "Plenty of people go without any help. I'm just trying to cut that down by a small percentage." 

He watched her carefully, his expression changing a little as he watched her. "So this is vengeance?" He asked. 

Kate shouldered her bag and turned, leaving him there. She felt emotional and she didn't want to break down in front of him. 

"I'll find you again if you keep doing this," he said after her. "And I won't be so nice next time." 

Kate ignored him and kept walking, he was going to make this difficult but she wasn't going to stop just because he said so.


End file.
